GSO Machete Discussion Thread

Fancier

Fancier

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I'm starting this thread for anybody that wants to discuss the hinted at GSO Machete.
I don't own any swords, but I do have a number of machetes and I have some ideas about what I'd like to see in a Survive machete.
My personal preference would be for something longer than the usual offerings, ideally around 24 inches.
It would probably take some test models to get the trade off between stiffness and weight right.
The longer machetes tend to flex more than I find comfortable when struck against a woody target.
Since a machete is intended as an agricultural tool and needs to be comfortable when used all day long,
I think that the handle contours are a place where a Survive version could really shine.
 
I think this thread is likely to run into the same diversity of preferences as the GSO20 thread unless some definition of machete or design/functional goals is the starting point. There is not a single design that will be useful for all purposes. To me, a machete should be a lightweight high blade velocity tool, not a heavy duty hardwood chopper. That means the blade stock should be thin enough to slice through softer vegetation and allow faster blade speed to cut flexy material. Not so thin that it flexes and can't follow the intended arc. Most machetes are thin for a reason. .25" is pretty sturdy and better for heavy chopping. Length 15-18" is what I find most useful. Shorter lacks reach (not so good on spiky thorny brush).

I guess in the end there will be a "need" for more than one option for different intended uses.
 
Survive! products are designed and manufactured with utmost practicality in mind. I do not expect their machete(s) to be any less if it ever becomes anything more than a developmental concept. That said, as a viable business they will have to conduct feasibility studies and assess to gauge as to where the sweet spot will be for them in that also crowded machete market!

IMHO, at least 2 machete sizes with slightly different designs, but without all the optional frills (as Ellie had already alluded to) to keep the costs more competitive. I think that both a 12"- 14" Golok type plus a 16" - 20" Bolo type ought to be seriously considered. The shorter one can perhaps be a Bowie design too so that it does not interfere with the GSO 12 (intended as a pure chopper).

I agree with Fancier on S!K having a complete understanding of the importance of handles.
 
This is just a question, no offense intended so please don't take any. What function does a short golok perform that the GSO-12 won't?
 
dogrunner said:
I think this thread is likely to run into the same diversity of preferences as the GSO20 thread unless some definition of machete or design/functional goals is the starting point. There is not a single design that will be useful for all purposes. To me, a machete should be a lightweight high blade velocity tool, not a heavy duty hardwood chopper. That means the blade stock should be thin enough to slice through softer vegetation and allow faster blade speed to cut flexy material. Not so thin that it flexes and can't follow the intended arc. Most machetes are thin for a reason. .25" is pretty sturdy and better for heavy chopping. Length 15-18" is what I find most useful. Shorter lacks reach (not so good on spiky thorny brush).

I guess in the end there will be a "need" for more than one option for different intended uses.
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All true, there are many styles of machetes and other large slashing and/or chopping work knives.
When I talk about a machete I'm thinking of a thin and wide blade with enough length to get good velocity, light and quick enough to slash foliage, and heavy enough to clear brush.
I think that 1/8" stock is near the upper limit of a useful thickness for a machete, more than that and I find them too heavy and slow and I'd rather have a saw or axe.
There is some advantage to forging a machete (rather than grinding it from sheet stock) because it is easier to create distal taper and reduce the flex.
 
I spoke to Guy a few years back. He mentioned that he wanted to make a machete out of S7 steel.
 
Fancier said:
This is just a question, no offense intended so please don't take any. What function does a short golok perform that the GSO-12 won't?
Click to expand...

I was sincerely wondering the same thing. Then I started to think Rodger is just hungry for .25 inch 3v :D
 
knife chop said:
I spoke to Guy a few years back. He mentioned that he wanted to make a machete out of S7 steel.
Click to expand...
Machetes are typically run pretty soft compared to knives. This is often touted as a benefit because it makes them easier to sharpen, and if you ding up a machete you have a lot of sharpening to do because of the length.
With S7 you could probably run it almost as hard as a knife and still not be concerned about breaking it.
 
I would be interested in a Survive! machete. I'm no machete expert but I have a bunch and use them in different climates. The length really depends on a person's height but a 14 to 18 inch blade gets a lot done if it has a generous handle to allow moving your grip around. The softer steels work well for fixing the inevitable stone strike. I also like heavier blades because a lot of tropical trailblazing relies on delimbing a tree at waist height while you're moving. Here in the tropics, you don't really process wood but you see a lot of trees like mohagany and purple heart that make oak seem like a joy to chop.
 
adnj said:
I would be interested in a Survive! machete. I'm no machete expert but I have a bunch and use them in different climates. The length really depends on a person's height but a 14 to 18 inch blade gets a lot done if it has a generous handle to allow moving your grip around. The softer steels work well for fixing the inevitable stone strike. I also like heavier blades because a lot of tropical trailblazing relies on delimbing a tree at waist height while you're moving. Here in the tropics, you don't really process wood but you see a lot of trees like mohagany and purple heart that make oak seem like a joy to chop.
Click to expand...
Yeah, if you are going to limb trees the extra thickness and weight is useful, and the length becomes less important if you aren't working near the ground.
Edit: Or if your knees bend better than mine do. :)
 
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For my purposes (mostly light brush and bramble clearing) I like a long latin style machete but they aren't optimal for heavier work. The south east asian blades tend to be shorter and heavier and chop better. A panga style with a flared tip is a decent compromise as long as it is thick enough and doesn't flex too much while chopping.
 
Fancier said:
Machetes are typically run pretty soft compared to knives. This is often touted as a benefit because it makes them easier to sharpen, and if you ding up a machete you have a lot of sharpening to do because of the length.
With S7 you could probably run it almost as hard as a knife and still not be concerned about breaking it.
Click to expand...

to be honest i'd prefer CPM 3v machete that's made by Dan Keffler. I've seen his samurai's bent at almost 90 degrees without breaking and that's hardened at 60.5 hrc. as far as sharpening, if a have a machete that made with a hard steel, i'd keep a diamond sharpener with me all the time. as far as chipping, i'm a firm believer that if PM steel is Ht'd and has the geometry for hard chopping it will be hard to chip.
 
None of my long blades are hard enough to chip. Even if you hit a rock with them the edge just rolls.
Some of the better axes in simple carbon steel are run into the high 50's and approach the kind of hardness we expect in a knife and they still don't chip.
You can argue that an axe is built thicker than a machete but at the edge it is still ground very thin.
All bets are off if the tree has inclusions like nails and rocks, although Nathan chisels bricks with his knives that is somewhat different than swinging a machete into one.
 
I was looking for this thread and it was already buried 3-4 pages deep! Well, since the dreams of a Survive! machete is just that, i.e, a pipe dream; I had been going back and forth agonizing as to whether to order a Fiddleback Forge machete to replace the TOPS 0.230 which I gifted to my younger Brother. There was just something about those FF machetes which didn't sit right with me even though they are very highly desirable.

Having had a couple of other makes (ESEE being one of them) in the past with a 16" blade, I wanted something shorter but the 12" FF didn't have my desired shape to it, plus not a big fan of their untreated leather sheath. While on DLT, suddenly I came across an LT Wright Overland machete which has that classic Bolo looking shape which I really liked. As impulsive as ever, I went ahead and ordered one. It has a 12" blade in 1075 high carbon steel and 3/32 spine thickness. I figured that LT Wright is a great bladesmith and what he churns out of his workshop is going to be very respectable. Their kydex sheaths are kind of funky looking, but I still prefer them to ballistic nylon or untreated leather.

Anyway, where is that other gear thread so that I post some photos when I receive this. I still would love to someday own a Survive! machete reportedly in S7 steel :)
 
I would love an s7 machete. I agree that there should be a couple of sizes. I hope to see the drawings and hear Guys thoughts. I don't see it as a pipe dream, I see it as not its time till its refined. I think S! will unveil it when its time.
 
Texas_toothpick said:
I would love an s7 machete. I agree that there should be a couple of sizes. I hope to see the drawings and hear Guys thoughts. I don't see it as a pipe dream, I see it as not its time till its refined. I think S! will unveil it when its time.
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Maybe using the phrase "pipe dream" was too strong! Perhaps I should have said "far fetched" instead. I think that if Survive! finds and hires a couple or a few bladesmiths who pass Guy's seemingly very stringent criteria, not only their current production paces should pick up but they can also expand their wings into the machete market. in my view a machete does not need to be as tachtical as a GSO knife because they will inevitably bite into things with little stones, gravel, etc lodged in and will chip and roll. Gathering by how Survive! comes up with their technical design aspirations and geometry to boot to the S7, it will be the Mother of all Machetes. A GSO MOAM ;)
 
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